The Science Behind Biophilic Design to Heal Mind, Body, & Soul
Can intentional design techniques and an enhanced connection to nature be the prescription needed to heal mind, body, and soul?
Our current modern world is filled with discomfort, disease, and disconnection as people have moved indoors away from the healing properties of nature. Finding our way back to health, happiness, and wellness may include a home plan intentionally designed with biophilia in mind.
In this 11th post of the Happy by Design series, I dive deeper into the science behind Biophilic Design and how to mimic intuitive patterns of behavior that happen when we’re immersed in nature to find healing for the mind, body, and soul.
Theory of Prospect & Refuge Environments
You can’t escape your instinctive search for safety and security. It’s designed into your nervous system. As ancient hunter/gatherers, humans learned to stay safe and alive by working with their natural environment. This adaptation has remained within us and explains why certain spaces make us feel safe while others make us feel exposed and vulnerable.
Researchers in the fields of Spatial and Environmental Psychology study the ability of different spatial configurations to evoke a positive sense of wellbeing. The Theory of Prospect and Refuge explains how certain environments meet the basic human psychological need to feel safe and secure. Prospect and refuge environments provide a view to see what’s coming towards you (prospect), while also providing protection where you can hide and not be seen by others (refuge).
In nature, a landscape of open fields where the eye can see for long distances can provide the sense of prospect, while an enclosed area of thick brush or a rock outcrop can provide refuge.
Prospect and refuge must work in tandem to achieve the
desired psychological outcome of feeling safe and secure.
In the build environment (as seen in full blog), a home designed with large windows and outdoor living spaces with great prospect over a lake view can be paired with deep porches and a u-shaped footprint that creates a sense of refuge, hidden from neighbors, and protection from the elements.
Read full blog...https://www.pippinhomedesigns.com/you-inspired-living/science_of_biophilic_design
